May 9, 2010

New ideas for the UN from The Economist

UNESCO is launching a prize for achievement in life sciences, paid for by and named after the President Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea. The Economist thinks it's a great idea. They even suggest the creation of many other such prizes:
  • The World Food Programme should ask Zimbabwe’s president for funds to establish a Robert Mugabe award for agricultural productivity.
  • The UN refugee agency could squeeze a few million dollars from Myanmar’s junta for a Than Shwe prize for promoting the rights of women prisoners.
  • The World Health Organisation could surely seduce Italy’s prime minister into providing some cash for a Silvio Berlusconi medal in sex education.
  • The International Atomic Energy Agency might tap Iran for a Mahmoud Ahmadinejad prize for the peaceful sponsorship of nuclear power.
  • UNESCO could next promote sartorial elegance with a Kim Jong Il gong for best-dressed dictator or launch a campaign for brevity in public speaking named after Venezuela’s president, Hugo Chávez.

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